The main purpose of this article is to provide historical and verifiable evidence that Jesus Christ existed; walked among men in a definite period of history and did what he did according to Biblical accounts. It is not intended to argue or proselytize. Sources mentioned are accessible and conclusions can be drawn.
If I cite Biblical or Christian evidence to justify the existence of Jesus Christ as a historical personality many people such as atheists and agnostics will conclude it is the case of a mother proving her son’s brilliance. So let us look at non-Biblical, non-Christian sources that indicate the following:
A There was really a person like Jesus Christ as indicated in the Bible.
B The claims about Jesus, as made by him and his followers, are valid and verifiable.
C Biblical accounts correspond with history.
TACITUS: He is one of the greatest of ancient Roman historians. He lived from 56-120 A.D. In his book ‘Annals’ which deals with the reign of Roman emperors between 14 A.D to 68 A.D. Tacitus wrote that Emperor Nero was considered responsible for the fire which devastated Rome in 64 A.D. To deflect blame, Nero accused Christians. To give background to whom these Christians were He wrote: ‘Christus, the founder of the name Christian, had undergone the death penalty in the reign of Tiberius by sentence of the procurator Pontius Pilate.’ (See Annals XV, 44).
Jesus Christ died in circa (Latin for approximately) 33 A.D. when Tiberius was Emperor of Rome (reigned from 14 A.D. to 37 A.D). Pilate was the governor or procurator of Judaea from 26 to 36 A.D. (see Gospel of Luke chapter 3 verses 1-2).
PLINY THE YOUNGER: This Roman administrator in Bithynia (in modern day Turkey) wrote his famous letter to Emperor Trajan about how he dealt with Christians in his jurisdiction. Those who recanted were spared; those who refused were executed. His exact words: ‘Those who …repeated after me an invocation to the gods, and offered adoration…to your image…who finally cursed Christ… I thought it proper to discharge.’ EMPEROR Trajan’s reply approved of his actions. Source: PLINY-LETTERS, BOOK X, XCVI
This source highlights this: Jesus Christ was known to the non- Christian, persecuting Roman leaders as the Lord and Principal Factor of the Christians. Why should the cursing of Christ be so important in getting Christians to give up their faith? The Roman emperors had ample reasons for seeking to stamp out Christianity as it undermined their religion and the cult of the Emperor, a vital pillar of the Empire. They knew what modern-day skeptics about Christ’s existence seek to deny: Jesus Christ is a real personality whose powerful teachings made people willing and ready to sacrifice their lives.
FLAVIUS JOSEPH: This Jewish historian is well known to many scholars of Christianity. He lived from circa 37 to 100 A.D. He wrote about Christ being a wise teacher executed by Pilate. One only has to consult his work ‘Jewish Antiquities’. There, he confirmed that ‘James, the brother of Jesus who was called the Christ’ was tried by the Sanhedrin (the Jewish high court).
This confirms Biblical passages about the brothers of Jesus Christ and one of them is called James (not to be confused with James, the apostle and brother of Apostle John). Read Matthew chapter 13 verse 55 and Acts chapter 12 verse 17. So there was a historical Jesus Christ with brothers and other family members, and non-Christians recorded the facts.
Jewish rabbinic writings (the Talmud) cited the existence of Jesus Christ. One passage stated that on ‘Passover Yeshu (Jesus) the Nazarene was hanged.’ Another passage records: ‘May we produce no son or pupil who disgraces himself in public like the Nazarene.’ Jesus was often called the Nazarene in the Bible. His parents migrated to the town of Nazareth after they returned from Egypt following Herod’s death. (See Matthew chapter 2 verses 19 to 23). These accounts from sources openly hostile to Jesus prove that he was not unknown in history; that his acts were real among a specific people and significant enough to attract opposition, even hate.
Contrary to what some religious believers think, faith does not preclude critical questioning of the fundamentals of belief. It is not out of place to ask if there really was a Jesus Christ in history. Is the Jesus Christ of the Bible a historical being? Is he a figment of the imagination or are there non-Biblical, non-Christian records to corroborate the Biblical account?
Perhaps another non-Biblical, non-Christian record worth investigating on this subject is Pontinus Pilate’s report to Emperor Tiberius Caesar on the arrest, trial, and crucifixion of Jesus Christ. This document was among manuscripts in the mosque of St. Sofia, Constantinople in Turkey. For the uninitiated: as the wave of Islam swept from Arabia after the death of Prophet Mohammed in A.D. 632, Europe and other parts of the world hitherto regarded as bastions of Christianity were taken over by Islam. Records about the faith that bear the name of Jesus Christ were buried in these centres and only came to light much later.
The report (of which a copy is in this writer’s possession) has a foreword based on the notes of Valleus Paterculus, a Roman historian whose works were referenced by two other notable historians, namely Tacitus and Prisician. According to the report, Valleus, a widely travelled Roman who was apparently connected to Caesar, was nineteen years old when Jesus Christ was born. His work is titled Historia Romania.
Valleus reports that while in Judaea he met Jesus of Nazareth. Of Jesus he wrote that ‘he was more afraid of Jesus than of a whole army for he cured all manner of diseases and raised the dead, and when he cursed the orchids or fruit trees for their barrenness, they instantly withered to their roots.’
Pilate’s report is a detailed account worth reading and it provides perspectives about the historical Jesus Christ that corroborate the Biblical reports about the last days of Jesus Christ. It should be pointed out that reports from governors/procurators/prefects posted by the Roman government to different provinces of their vast empire was not unusual. Such reports/letters to the emperors or other organs of the empire such as the senate or even felloe officials go a long way in providing information about the Roman Empire and its place in the history of humanity.
I will highlight and quote verbatim portions of Pilate’s account from which the reader can draw his conclusions about the historicity of Jesus Christ:
1. Pilate’s initial encounter with Jesus Christ shortly after he (Pilate) was posted to Judaea as governor:
‘Among the various rumours that came to my ears there was one in particular that attracted my attention. One young man, it was said, had appeared in Galilee preaching with a noble unction a new law in the name of the God that had sent him. At first I was apprehensive that his design was to stir up the people against the Romans but my fears were soon dispelled.
‘Jesus of Nazareth spoke rather as friend of the Romans than the Jews. One day in passing by the place of Silloe, where there was a great concourse of people, I observed in the midst of the group a young man who was leaning against a tree, calmly addressing the multitude. I was told it was Jesus (Hebrew: Yahshua).
‘This I could easily have suspected, so great was the difference between him and those listening to him. He appeared to be about thirty years of age. Never have I seen a sweeter or more serene countenance. What a contrast between him and his hearers, with their black beards and tawny complexions! Unwilling to interrupt him by my presence I continued my walk but signified my secretary to join the group and listen.
‘My secretary’s name is Manlius. He is the grandson of the chief of the conspirators who camped in Etruria waiting for Cataline. Manlius had been for a long time an inhabitant of Judaea and is well acquainted with the Hebrew language. He was devoted to me, and worthy of my confidence.
‘On entering the praterorium I found Manlius who related to me the words Jesus had pronounced at Siloe. Never have I read in the works of the philosophers anything that can compare to the maxims of Yahshua. One of the rebellious Jews, so numerous in Jerusalem, having asked him if it was lawful to give tribute to Caesar he replied: ‘Render unto Caesar the things that belong to Caesar and unto God the things that belong to God.
‘It was on account of the wisdom of his sayings that I granted so much liberty to the Nazarene; for it was in my power to have him arrested and exiled to Pontius but that would have been contrary to the justice which has always characterized the Roman government in all its dealings with men; this man was neither seditious nor rebellious; I extended to him my protection, unknown perhaps to himself. He was at liberty to act, to speak, to assemble and address the people, and to choose disciples, unrestrained by any praterorium mandate.’
To be continued…
Written by Henry Chukwuemeka Onyema.
henrykd2009@yahoo.com
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